Email systems facilitate the exchange of electronic mail over a network, such as a LAN (local area network), WAN (wide area network), or public network (e.g., Internet). Most people are familiar with traditional computer email systems, which are constructed on a client-server model. The email system involves a server-based mail program residing on the server computer to manage the exchange of email messages over one or more networks and a client-based mail program residing on the client to implement a mailbox that receives and holds the email messages for a user. The client-based mail program also implements a graphical user interface that enables the user to open and read mail, or to create new mail messages.
Other email systems have evolved that are more focused on the server side of the equation than on the client side. In these types of systems, email servers provide the bulk of the functionality that a client sees when the client enters the email environment. One such system is shown generally at 20 in FIG. 1 and includes an email server system 22 having a processor 24 that is configured to receive email messages from a sender and distribute copies of the email messages to one or more recipients. A recipient storage location 26 is provided and includes a plurality of storage locations that are dedicated to individual recipients, with three exemplary dedicated storage locations being shown at 28, 30 and 32. The email messages that are received by the server system are copied directly into the dedicated storage locations (sometimes referred to as “inboxes”) for each recipient. If one message is received with nine specified recipients, then nine copies of the message are made and placed into nine separate dedicated recipient storage locations.
In systems such as these, many of the functions that are traditionally implemented by a client machine are implemented by the server system 22. For example, email messages, records, passwords, user preferences, address lists, and the like are all saved on the server side in storage locations that are dedicated for each recipient. Recipients or clients must then typically log in with the server and run a browser program that lets them work within the email system to read their messages. Logging in with the server is typically accomplished over a computer network such as the Internet, and through the use of a suitable web browser. The email environment is generated by the server through the use of HTML or web pages that present the recipient or client with a screen that looks like an email box. All email messages are delivered using the web page format. Microsoft's Hotmail service is an exemplary system.
Email is a tremendously fast and efficient way to send electronic messages. One of the problems that plagues the efficient use of email is the growing presence of unwanted and unsolicited emails. These emails are typically referred to as “spam.” Spam can include unsolicited commercial emails (UCE) or noncommercial emails. Spam is a menace that clogs email systems, slows down performance, and severely impacts the manner in which email services are provided by an email server to its clients.
From an operational standpoint, UCE or spam can consume vast amounts of disk space and can monopolize many other machine resources. For example, in the FIG. 1 example, when an email message is received by server system 22, a copy for each intended recipient is made and placed into the dedicated storage location for each recipient. In the illustrated example, processor 24 receives a spam message and makes a copy of the spam message for each of the intended recipients, i.e. recipients 28, 30 and 32. If a large number of recipients are specified by the sender, then a large amount of server memory can be consumed by replicating the message and placing it in each dedicated storage location for each specified recipient. The typical message has the following fields that are shown in the figure: “TO”, “FROM”, “CC”, “BC”, and “SUBJECT”.
From a customer service standpoint, system administrators are often at a loss to combat the delivery of spam to their individual clients. This can and often does result in large numbers of complaints and bounced email messages. Additionally, customers often do not wish to even receive certain types of morally or otherwise offensive emails. Yet, because the spammers (those who promulgate spam) predominate, innocent clients continue to be bombarded with unwanted email messages. From a legal standpoint, valuable time and resources are wasted in pursuing spammers because of the various havoc they wreak on network systems. Needless to say, spam continues to plague those who are in the business of providing email services to clients.
Accordingly, this invention arose out of concerns associated with providing improved systems and methods for reducing the impact that UCE and spam has on email recipients.